But all those extra bobbles and balls do not mean you can’t still find some affordable cheer around town.

It’s not too late to book one of the best cheap hotels in Paris and head to the City of Light for a holiday getaway as 2019 turns into 2020.

More Paris budget tips

• Paris on the Cheap: The top 25 free things to do
• A guide to finding the best time of year to visit Paris
• 10 ways to prepare for your Paris vacation

How to celebrate the holiday season in Paris

Have you ever dreamed of visiting Paris in the weeks leading up to Christmas and New Year’s Eve? Here are six easy ways to celebrate in Paris à la Cheapo.

1. Bask in the glow

Through early January, the city’s iconic streets are aglow with holiday lights, Christmas window displays and the sounds of the holidays. Of special note are the trees and lights at Place Vendome (through January 2020) the festive decorations hanging across rue Montorgueil, and of course, the ever-campy but always appreciated displays on the historic Champs-Elysées (November 24 to January 8, 2020).

Ladling up a mulled mug at the Christmas market along the Champs-Elysées. Photo: anniemole

2. Stroll with mulled wine

To appreciate the lights, be sure to grab a cup of hot wine (vin chaud) to go while strolling the streets. The Christmas markets, while selling plenty of trinkets, do manage to provide enough of the sweetened, spiced wine to make them worth a trip. Once the holidays are finished, the wine is still available in most cafés, and is often a bit tastier — and it doesn’t get cold as quickly.

Check out the official Paris tourism website for the 2019 list of markets and holiday activities.

A classic and affordable French dining experience awaits at Chartier. Photo: shufgy

3. Feast for less

Holiday eating in Paris can be tricky because many places close on December 24, 25, and January 1, but diners won’t starve, even on a budget. A simple yet exceedingly affordable meal can be had at old favorite Chartier while those looking to drop a bit more can have a four-course Christmas meal (including Champagne!) at the famed Coupole for €75. Though it may seem steep, it’s a lot cheaper than many holiday menus around town!

Ice skate under the spectacular dome of the Grand Palais. Photo: Le Grand Palais des Glaces Facebook Page

4. Hit the rink

Winter is here, but that doesn’t mean you have to spend all of your time in Paris huddled away. Strap on your skates or rent a pair and hit the largest rink in the world at Le Grand Palais from December 13 to January 8, 2020. You can also skate at the Christmas Market at Champs de Mars right under the Eiffel Tower (through January 2020). If it’s a bit too frigid outside, the Patinoire Pailleron by the Parc de Buttes Chaumont is a bit more tolerable with its indoor rink and costs just a few euros to take hit the ice.

Ring in the New Year with a twinkling Eiffel Tower. Photo: tonyjcase

5. Toast the New Year

Although there haven’t been fireworks for several years in Paris on New Year’s, the Eiffel Tower does offer a lively light show, and the Champs-Elysees is the place to be if you want to join the throngs. Otherwise, don’t expect much more than a Champagne toast at midnight and some rabble-rousers in the streets.

A cake fit for a king. Photo: lesteph

6. …and cut the cake

There is more to look forward to in early 2020. On January 6, the Feast of the Epiphany, you’ll see bakeries decked out with the galette des rois, the frangipane-based cake that ushers in the New Year. A small figurine of the baby Jesus is hiding inside each cake, and French tradition holds that he or she who finds the token in their slice buys next year’s cake.

Did you find the baby? Congratulations! You can start off the New Year in debt — vive la France!

Your tips

Have you been to Paris during the holiday season? Tell us what you like to do during your visit!

The post Paris: 6 ways to celebrate the holidays (without blowing your budget) appeared first on EuroCheapo's Budget Travel Blog.

Recently images from the new book have been making waves across social media sites, particularly Muratyan’s map of Paris that replaces arrondissements with New York neighborhoods.

The Café Francais, in Bastille. Photo: SSedro

For those who know both cities, the comparisons are uncanny, so I thought it might be fun to see which ones are spot-on and which ones seem like a stretch:

1. Bastille – Bowery, East Village: Spot on.

The young, artsy, still up-and-coming Bastille neighborhood where the Revolution ceremoniously began (well, for some) reflects the same vibe you get walking through the gentrifying East Village – although Bastille is much better serviced by the subway system.

2. Marais – West Village, Chelsea: Spot on.

The quirky gay-friendly Marais has all of the vivacity of Chelsea and the West Village, with pricey boutiques to match.

3. Latin Quarter – Greenwich Village, NYU: Stretch.

50 years ago it would have been true, but besides being student neighborhoods, the Latin Quarter feels much more like a tourist trap than the Village. It’s a place where students occasionally study and party, with none of the urban campus vibe of NYU where thousands of students actually live.

4. Montmartre – Gramercy: Spot on.

Severely gentrified since its Belle Epoque bohemian days (think Moulin Rouge) Montmartre, much like Gramercy Park, is a charming place that most people just look at with so few possessing the keys (read: money) to truly access this neighborhood.

5. Passy – Upper West Side: Stretch.

Young people live in and like the Upper West Side. Some young people live in Passy, but no one likes it.

Tourists stream down the Champs-Élysees. Photo: Caribb

6. Champs Elysées – Times Square: Spot on.

Both are equally avoided by locals. At all cost.

7. Arc de Triomphe – Washington Square: Stretch.

We get the similarities, but the Beatniks and students at the Washington Square arch have nothing in common with the Napoleonic greatness of the military-inspired Arc de Triomphe.

8. Choissy – Chinatown: Spot on.

Porte de Choissy is Paris’s liveliest Chinatown, though New  York’s version is even more vibrant.

Taking in Times Square. Photo: Ed Yourdon

9. Saint-Germain – Upper East Side: Stretch.

While they share similar qualities like museums and old rich people, Saint-Germain has many redeeming ones for locals, including great restaurants, boutiques, and endless café culture. The Upper East Side has redeeming qualities as well.  Just give me a few minutes…

10. Louvre – The Met, Union Square: Stretch.

Two big museums, OK, it was necessary. But I’m not sure about the Union Square comparison aside from the skateboarders.

11. Opéra – Theatre District: Spot on.

Locals and visitors alike flock to the area around the Opéra for a night of ballet, music, or comedy in one of the many smaller venues that fuels Paris’s theater scene. Even though theaters are found all over the city, the majestic Opéra Garnier and its little brother the nearby Opéra Comique are two of the most popular.

Your comparisons? So urban dwellers, what do you think about the comparisons between these cities?

The post Paris vs. New York… The neighborhood showdown appeared first on EuroCheapo's Budget Travel Blog.

Come on, Cheapos, walk this way!

Getting there

Along the Champs-Elysées

For instant gratification or if you’re pressed for time, get off at Metro “Place Charles de Gaulle.” But for the love of anticipation, take the Metro to either “Franklin D. Roosevelt” or “Porte Dauphine.”

Center of attention

Like a sympathetic angel in a Wim Wenders film, the Arc de Triomphe looks down on the city of Paris from her post on top of the hill of Chaillot. Located at the center of the heavily trafficked Place Charles de Gaulle, she is the key piece of L’Axe historique — a series of monuments that starts at the Sun King’s equestrian statue in the Musée du Louvre courtyard and ends in the outskirts of Paris at La Defense.

L’aimant (The magnet)

Although the Arc was commissioned by Napoleon in 1806, she didn’t reach her full regal glory until the 1860s when city planner Haussmann made her an urban center of attention. At 165 ft high and 150 ft wide, she’s the second largest triumphal arch on earth (a slightly larger one is an expanded replica in Pyongyang, North Korea).

Her domineering stature has made her the perfect staging ground for pageants, parades, and demonstrations. She’s attracted lovers, daredevils, and more than the occasional suicide.

View from the top.

Bit-o-history

Almost immediately after her completion, desperate women started throwing themselves off the rooftop parapet, climbing the 284 steps to reach it. Figuring out which police department to contact after one of these unfortunate events was often a major source of confusion for French officials, because the Arc de Triomphe sits at the juncture of four arrondissements and they had never clearly settled whether the departure spot or the point of arrival should be the determining factor in establishing proper jurisdiction.

In 1919, French aviators were somehow left out of the planning for the WWI victory parade. They were quite sore about it, so they decided at an impromptu meeting at Fouquet’s bar on the Champs-Elysées to “repair the affront.” Lieutenant Charles Godefroy was assigned to the task of rectifying the omission. On the 9th of August, he flew his Nieuport biplane through the womb-like arch with the greatest of ease, after practicing with a wooden replica of the same size.

It was a risk worth taking, as the aviators were never left out of any future celebrations. In fact, nowadays the French Air Force provides the finale for the Défilé militaire du 14 juillet (The Bastille Day Military Parade) the oldest and largest military parade in the world, which has been held each year in Paris since 1880.

This has been Theadora Brack! Keep on flying, Cheapos!

More info

Arc de Triomphe
Official website

Hours:
April 1 to September 30: 10 a.m. to 11 p.m.
October 1 to March 31 : 10 a.m. to 10:30 p.m.

Admission:
Adults: € 9
Reduced rate: € 5.50
Free: Children under 18 (and citizens of EU member countries under 25 years old), disabled visitors and unemployed visitors.

The post Paris: Visiting the Arc de Triomphe appeared first on EuroCheapo's Budget Travel Blog.

A cheapo dream-come-true, the shop is stocked with more than 250 discounted brands of produits de beauté, and staffed with 200 knowledgeable employees dressed in black and poised to help you explore the outer you.

Inside the Champs-Elysées Sephora.

Pump it up

A French superstar since 1969, Sephora is a cross between a gigantic supermarket and a glittering playground, with testers available for every product sold. Music and spontaneous dance sessions led by the staff also stoke its irresistible “backstage on opening night” vibe.

One can easily spend both night and day applying products—which is not a problem at the Champs Elysée location, as its doors are open till ’round midnight.

A tour of hard-to-find fragrances

Cheapos, Sephora is the place to study the French classics or buy a gorgeous (and difficult-to-find) flacon (“vial”) for someone special back home. Interested in a scent? Ask for a free sample. They’ll happily prepare one for you.

With so many choices, where to start? To help make-up your mind, I’ve created a spray-by-spray shopping list of some of the famous (and sometimes difficult to find) fragrances available here.

Here’s a “Cheapo’s dozen”: 11 of my favorite scents, and the stars who loved them. So strike a pose, there’s nothing to it!

An impromptu dance session.

1. “Ivoire” by Balmain (1979)

A fiery encounter with a woman swathed in ivory on the Opéra steps moved Pierre Balmain to create the fragrance. Greta Garbo and Audrey Hepburn were absolutely cuckoo for it! And speaking of visions in white, he also designed Audrey’s first wedding gown.

2. “Fleur de Rocaille” by Caron (1933)

Ava Gardner wore the original version, inspired by Monet’s water-lily paintings. Ava radiated in “The Sun Also Rises,” based on Hemingway’s novel. And guess who served as Papa’s spy during the shooting of the film? At the time, no one smelled a rat.

3. “Cabochard” by Grés (1959)

Shaped and named by Madame Grés after voyaging to India, “Cabochard” translates to “stubborn” or “headstrong.” Marquise Gloria “Norma Desmond” Swanson was mad about it.

4. “L’Interdit” by Givenchy (1957)

Count Hubert de Givenchy fashioned “L’Interdit,” (“The Forbidden”) for muse Audrey Hepburn, as well as her luscious garments for films like “Sabrina,” “Funny Face,” “Breakfast at Tiffany’s,” and “Paris When it Sizzles.”

5. “Jicky” by Guerlain (1889)

Not only were Brigitte Bardot, Colette  and Sarah Bernhardt devotees, but so were Roger Moore, Sean Connery and Peter Sellers. Created the same year the Eiffel Tower was built, “Jicky” was one of the first fragrances to be made with synthetic ingredients.

The Givenchy display.

6. “L’Heure Bleue” by Guerlain (1912)

“L’Heure Bleue” (“Twilight”) softly wooed both Catherine Deneuve and Wallis Simpson (Duchess of Windsor), who smartly paired it with Guerlain’s other classic, “Mitsouko.”

7. “Mitsouko” by Guerlain (1919)

Celebrating the end of WWI, Jean Harlow, Ingrid Bergman, Charlie Chaplin, Anaïs Nin and Serge Diaghilev all took to Mitsouko’s bold intensity. Jean Harlow’s husband, Paul Bern (MGM producer), sprayed himself with her Mitsouko just before committing suicide, only two weeks after their wedding. Talk about lingering power!

8. “Vol de Nuit” by Guerlain (1933)

Created as a tribute to flyer Antoine de Saint-Exupery (author of “The Little Prince”), aviators around the globe, along with Claudette Colbert, Marlene Dietrich and Katherine Hepburn, all found the scent of “Night Flight” heads above others. Its bottle evokes an airplane propeller.

Aisles of cosmetics

9. “Arpège” by Lanvin (1927)

Princess Diana, Rita Hayworth and Jayne Mansfield fell for its full-bodied scent.

10. “Joy” by Jean Patou (1930)

Patou launched it just after the stock market crashed, because he wanted to lift the gloom and give his American clientele something they could still afford to buy. Even so, it was immediately nicknamed “the most expensive perfume in the world” by Patou’s friend and gossip columnist Elsa Maxwell because it took 10,000 jasmine flowers from Grasse and 360 roses from Bulgaria just to make one ounce.

Grace Kelly, Josephine Baker, Vivien Leigh, Sophia Lauren, Marilyn Monroe and Mary Pickford all helped spread a little Joy around.

11. “Femme” by Rochas (1945)

Mae West, Joan Crawford, and Carole Lombard all found the original formula simply diva-licious. Mae West’s curvaceous torso inspired the shape of not just one hourglass-shaped bottle, but two—for Femme by Rochas and for Elsa Schiaparelli’s Shocking!

As Schiaparelli said, “C’est divin! C’est divin!”

Practical information

Address: 70 avenue des Champs-Elysées
Tel: +33 1 53 93 22 50
Hours: Open 10 a.m.-12 a.m. (Sunday-Thursday), 10 a.m.-1 a.m. (Friday and Saturday)

The post Paris: 11 famous perfumes to test for free on the Champs-Elysées appeared first on EuroCheapo's Budget Travel Blog.